Sharing a picture book

Ages 0 to 2 A grown-up reads and plays along · about 10 minutes

Read together

Look, a dog! The dog says woof.

Where is the dog's tail? There it is!

Do it

1. Choose a sturdy board book with big, clear pictures.
2. Sit close, with your child in your lap if they like. Let them hold and chew a safe book.
3. Point to a picture and name it. Wait. Say, “What is that?” Answer yourself if they do not.
4. Add one more fact: “The dog is brown.” Move on when your child loses interest. One page is enough.

Talk about it

• Which picture does your child touch first?
• Which animal sound do they like?

For the grown-up

Sharing a book is more about the warm time together than finishing the story. Point, name, wait, add a little. Do not worry if your child chews it.

Library books are free in many places. You can share a book in any language you speak.

Mark as done

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Where this comes from

• American Academy of Pediatrics, “Literacy Promotion: An Essential Component of Primary Care Pediatric Practice”, Pediatrics 134 (2014): 404 to 409
• Grover J. Whitehurst et al., “Accelerating Language Development through Picture Book Reading”, Developmental Psychology 24 (1988): 552 to 559

Written with AI assistance and checked against the sources listed. Please read it before sharing it with a child.